Monster
by Miyuusen
Summary: A shinobi and a samurai of the Heian period of feudal Japan have both—due to faulty placing of explosives—somehow fallen into a world of chaos, filled with monsters, clan wars, a place unlike any other. Will they be able to survive? OC insert.


**Chapter 1**

**by Miyuusen + Ninjagirl2211**

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_**Summary**: _A shinobi and a samurai of the Heian period of feudal Japan have both, due to faulty placing of bombs, have somehow been transported into a world of chaos. It's filled with monsters and clan wars, a place unlike any other, will they be able to survive?

**_Disclaimer: _**I own none of the Naruto characters. Only My OC's.

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_Heian Period, Year 1067_

Gripping her Kunai with deft fingers, the girl carefully watched the target-a samurai, rather well known in his line of work, who was on his way to guard someone of a particularly influential family. She had specific orders not to let this happen at any cost, to detain him, at least until sundown. As her master was assembling men for the organized assassination of this one said member of the family, she would have to hold out. The girl figured only three men would be needed to complete this mission, including one unlucky Kunoichi and her feminine charms in order to sneak into the family's compound. They'd have enough funds to lie low for six months with this job-enough time to train the younger recruits.

The master's orders were to detain the man before her as he headed west to meet with his client. The girl would carry out the mission. Of course she would, even if it came with the price of her life-as would be the likely result. Considering her lack of experience, being at the age where a normal girl would be at home learning the ways of a maiden, and how to become a good wife; she was far from a normal girl. Normal girls didn't dress like boys, much less take upon themselves the training she was required to have in order to stay alive-the training to kill silently, and to be enveloped in shadows.

But none of it mattered now. She needed to focus on the man before her, to think of a way to detain him without getting herself killed. She possessed no blatant death wish. Like most, she still had important things she had to accomplish with her life, and they did not include dying. For her dreams, she needed to use all of her skills, earned through blood, sweat, and honest hard work to succeed the way her master expected. With barely a sound, she inched slowly forward, staying hidden in the dense, shadowed shrubbery growing along the sides of the carefully carved out pathway of the forest.

She'd been there all day, at the place she'd been told was his chosen path, setting up traps, explosives, waiting eagerly, _itching_ for the moment of action. A samurai's armor would protect him, but as a ninja, trained to fight dirty and win at all costs, she knew all the weak points; it was time. The samurai walked with a certain, confident gait, advancing with sure, steady movements on his intended path. That is- until a kunai knife was launched with proudly honed accuracy in his direction, hitting the tree beyond him. If it wasn't a sure signal of an assassin's presence, she wasn't sure what _was_. The shinobi had a plan of action then, lighting up in her thoughts in all its brilliance: a deadly game of cat and mouse-in other words, the keep-away game.

His gaze swiveled in her direction, his, sharp, with evident dismay. Sensing possible danger, she slipped from the hiding spot with a shadow's grace. Cautiously, soundlessly, she climbed a tree set off to the right, and once there-settled into greenery obscured with branches, her weight evenly distributed so as not to jostle them-the girl readied another knife in her palm. Unseen, she studied his tense form as he scanned his surroundings; a rocky and mountainous woodland pass, full of the sounds of chirping birds. A burbling creek could be heard somewhere off in the distance and the air smelled sweet with the scent of summer. The cries of the cicadas could be heard in the trees around them, and she even spotted one not too far from her nose, hidden amongst them and their leafy home as she was. She was thankful for the loud noise they created as it masked her own inevitable sounds perfectly.

The samurai's face was cold, emotionless, with strange, bright blue eyes gleaming under his ornate helmet in the unrelenting sunlight. It beat down on them both like an unyielding master, causing sweat to roll down in beads on both their bodies under their respective uniforms of trade-he, his heavy, almost ornamental looking armor, and the girl, her black, form-fitting, masked attire. Her lips pulled up into a small grin when she took in his youthful features. He couldn't have been much older than her own seventeen years, so it meant he couldn't be much stronger either. Despite this, she'd learned quite a bit about the man from rumors and the like. Knowing this, she shouldn't have doubted him, having been explicitly taught that underestimating an opponent was practically asking for death…

"Who is there?" The man asked, his voice guarded and his eyes searching. As a reply, she threw the kunai in her palm. It ricocheted off his plate armor with a clang as she hurried to leap into the boughs of another tree. Absently, she realized she shouldn't be wasting her weaponry so frivolously, but it wasn't as if there wasn't more where that came from. Anything could become a weapon in the hands of a skilled killer after all, though Kiro constantly nagged her about it… She understood the value, but…never mind. It wasn't important.

"Show yourself, Coward!" He continued in a clear smooth voice, drawing the girl back into clarity, "Be a man and face my sword! I shall cut you down where you stand!"

Not one to take insults, the girl replied thoughtlessly through her black cloth mask, "Do you honestly expect me to come to you when you say something like that?" Immediately, dismayed, she realized her mistake. Giving away her position so carelessly because of a silly thing like pride… With this, she couldn't even call herself a proper ninja. Master should never have left her this job; she thought he knew clearly by now how much of an idiot she could be at times…

"So there you are…" His eyes came to rest upon her trickily camouflaged form in the shadows of the branches, a grin tracing upon his lips, "You're small though. Are you certain you should really be messing with someone of my stature?"

She blinked once before letting out a rueful chuckle, "So much for that game… So, shall we play another, Samurai-san? Or should I call you…Masanori?"

If he was shocked by her knowledge of his name, he didn't show it. Instead, his gaze only sharpened as she dropped from her place in the trees to land stealthily into a low crouch upon the ground. He held his ground watchfully, his stance ready, his hand on the hilt of his sword, "…A game?"

"Indeed." She confirmed, smiling through her mask, "I thought we could enjoy it for a bit longer, but I was wrong. Though I suppose I only have myself to blame for that…" She cocked her head at him initiating a slow, cat-like circling-as she crept closer, counter clockwise from him, he moved in the opposite direction. She kept low to the ground, her movements steady, focused on his own and instinctively searching for openings, "You said you would 'cut me down,' hmm? But now my feelings are hurt…you haven't even drawn your sword, Masanori-kun! Is someone like me unworthy in your eyes? Don't let my size fool you." She smiled cheerfully, pulling out a sharp pointed shuriken, still putting on her bluffing airs, "You may want to rethink that if you desire to live…"

Of course, she knew the ultimate result of the confrontation would likely result in her own death. She may have been one of the top shinobi of her clan in terms of physical skill. Her movements were silent, calculated, her aim sure, and true, unafraid to cut down anyone in her path, feeling no remorse for her enemies until the mission was complete and she was lying safe again amongst her comrades trying and failing to sleep at night. Despite this, to quote her master, 'her skill was wasted when it came to her brains.' She wished she could be smarter…or maybe she just needed someone to point and shoot. Either way, she was sure that neither option would end well for her.

"So you know my name… and your mission is clearly my death." His watchful eyes narrowed, "Your rudeness is too much, Little Boy. You'd do well to address your senior and your enemy with the proper respect due to their station."

"Big words…" The girl's rueful smirk widened under her mask, "…but it's just fine if you think of me as rude, Masa-_chan_." Her voice played with his pet name teasingly.

He might have seemed exasperated, his eyes narrowing even further, "You really are a stupid one, aren't you…" It wasn't even a question.

It may have undoubtedly been the truth, but even she could become offended when hearing it, "Hey! I happen to like myself the way I am, thanks very much, you Bastard." With a scowl she glared, and tensed as he finally slid his sword gracefully from its scabbard. Apparently he didn't like the playful name calling. Sighing inwardly, she took in the hard features and thought blandly to herself: _Well, this doesn't look like it's going to be a very fun game at all, does it…?_

Her thoughts seemed to predict the future when abruptly, quickly, his sword rose, allowing it to gleam brilliantly in the noon-day sun, as he swung brashly at her slim guarded form. Reacting from instinct, she slid back onto the tips of her toes, narrowly dodging the sharp deadly blade's attack. Breathing in a quick sigh of relief, she admired how beautiful his form had been before she hastily slipped away. Using the surrounding trees and greenery for cover, she found a suitable place to take cover; a hollowed out space in a rather old looking oak tree. She would gain some much needed time to reorganize her plan of action and take on her current foe with the help of the new hiding spot.

She, as a ninja, had been trained to fight in the shadows. Thus, no matter how much she hated running away, it was the best possible plan of action. Yet, he was a samurai. Samurai fought better at close-range and she was only average at that type of combat. The girl clearly had many advantages, but those advantages could clearly be disadvantageous. She would have to play this safe. In order to stay alive, she would have to mix things up. She would have to come to complete concentration in order to cleanly switch from offense to defense at a moment's notice.

Hearing footsteps closing in, the girl swiftly moved from her hiding spot, halting sounds of her breathing so as to hear slightly better. The noises of the wildlife in the forest made it difficult but she soon detected that he was coming from her left. Best to go right and find a place to hide in. _For now, defense is better. Not good to rush into things. _She found such an area in the shrubbery, not far off from her original hiding place. At this spot, she could keep close to the ground, watch for him and keep a clear head. Just as anticipated, he headed in her direction, his gait a bit stricter than before as he kept his watchful eyes surveying his surroundings. _Time to fight dirty_.

For a brief moment, the samurai turned his back to her. She slithered from her place, sneaking up behind him with a kunai in her hand. She then launched herself onto his back, ripping off his helmet and pulling her knife up to his throat. "Any sudden movements and you die," she informed him, her voice quiet as she prepared for him to fight back.

He could take her down, if he choose to fight dirty as well. He outmatched her in size and brawn but she hoped that the fact that with her weaponry at his throat he would be a tad bit thoughtful. She'd been told that samurai didn't normally pull underhanded tricks but the girl couldn't bring herself to believe it. Even when her master had told her about the habits of the samurai many times before, she was doubtful that any man in danger of _dying_ wouldn't opt to fight back at any costs. Although she had been trained to kill the military dogs, the samurai, it was an unheard of occurrence - samurai VS shinobi. Shinobi were the ones who stayed in the shadows, the ones who it was rare to hear from. The samurai on the other hand, were the ones who served, the heart of the military and were in the position to do great things. Yes, she doubted any of her comrades, her fellow trained assassins, had fought against a bushi, the samurai.

_Why on Earth did Master send me?_ The thought nagged at her as she paid special attention to Masanori's reactions. He wasn't moving but he breathed out evenly, showing that he hadn't swallowed any pills to take the "easy" way out. She couldn't sense his thoughts and ultimately, after a tense moment of silence, she spoke up again, "So, uh, are you going to fight back?"

"You aren't leaving any openings."

She was a bit taken aback at the unexpected compliment. Or at least, she took it that way. Then, she quickly strengthened her resolve as she pressed the kunai's tip closer in, "I'm sure you could have found a way to make one. Bushi are superb martial art fighters. Or has it all been a big bluff?"

"I assure you I'm just bidding my time before you get tired and let down your guard. Then your head shall fall from your neck."

"One problem, I have great stamina. Endurance has always been a specialty of mine. I can stay here all day if I have to." It wasn't much of a stretch. Her master had given her some pretty grueling training. Now it should pay off.

Masanori didn't reply and for a while, things were quiet as she kept her legs wrapped around his waist, her arms on his shoulder, her wrist poised for action. Then, distantly, she heard the sounds of an explosion. The sound had been something she'd grown accustomed to over the years, considering her friends love of using the weapon and she suddenly had a very bad feeling. An animal must've set it off but she wasn't panicked over that. Looking to where the bomb had gone off, she watched in dawning horror as her bombs decided to go off one by one, getting closer to where she was at with the samurai.

How could she have been so_ stupid _to set them up that way? It was a rookie's mistake to set up bombs so closely and now she was going to pay for it. With _both_ of them dying. She really wanted to smack herself.

"You set up _bombs_!?" Masanori questioned, his voice that of one talking down to a child, "In a forest where things catch fire easily?"

Her heart sunk at the thought of how deadly a forest fire could be. _This just gets better doesn't it_? The girl thought sarcastically as she jumped off his back, landing softly on the forest floor, thinking that before the bombs got set off near their area, she could escape. Masanori turned to face her, his eyes filled with a dangerous emotion. Anger perhaps? With a shake of her head she decided not to linger on those thoughts, opting to run away from the bombs going off. About ten of them had already done so, the sound of it seemed to announce a timer for her impending doom.

Masanori seemed to have the same idea of running away from the bombs going off as he was right behind the girl, having picked up his fallen helmet. The two hurried away as yet another bomb was set off, debris flying the air.

"How many of them?" Masanori asked and she quickly tallied it up.

"20, precisely."

"Are you positive?" Masanori asked, his gaze superstitious. In reply, the girl gave him an exasperated glare, "You are a shino-."

_Boom_!

This time it was closer - too close, and she began to hear a distinct ringing tone in her ears. The sound brought with it a dim - seemingly unrelated - memory of before she left for the mission. It succeeded in distracting her from the fact that Masanori and her had reached a dead end, their path blocked by a large stone that seemed impossible to veer around. But she didn't care right now, in her memory she saw a wise looking old man who was as familiar to her as any other kid's parents were to them. This was the man that she had grown up with and had come to think of him as her grandfather. He was the one who had taken her in after all; saving her. And that was what he wanted to do again, apparently. In the memory he was giving her something, a charm. He had explained in his gruff voice that this charm would protect her if she was in danger-but only if it were from something that caused danger to her life.

The girl had brought it with her, if only to satisfy her master's will, and couldn't clearly understand why he would want her to have it. She wasn't the type to believe in the abnormal but she would have faith in him. The memory was obviously a warning, at least to those who _believe_, and for the sake of her master, she stopped in her tracks and rustled in her pouch for the slip of paper and decided to trust in it.

She had no better plan than this. Her idiocy would get them killed. There was nowhere to run anymore. Masanori had also halted, his glares sent toward the shinobi. The man opened his mouth slightly, as if to speak, but was cut off by the sounds of another bomb going off. The sound of it added fuel to her crazy plan and she quickly bit her thumb, bleeding onto the paper.

"_Protect me_," she muttered as she had been told to do for the activation.

"What are you doing?" Masanori questioned, hiding a flinch as another bomb went off, dawning ever closer to the two.

The girl quickly studied him before she approached him, her face expressionless as she ordered in a tone that left little to argue about, "Hold out your hand."

The distrust and disgust was clear on his face as he stubbornly stayed completely still. She wasted no time with this childishness and pulled out a kunai, slashing at his uncovered face - he still had yet to put on his helmet- and swiping the charm with his fresh blood. She had been too quick for him and felt an odd sense of satisfaction, although it was short lived.

_Good, now if I end up dying a horrible death, I won't be alone._ She was hysterically thinking this - with or without this charm - they would surely die. But she couldn't force herself to think sanely. She was too scared. Her nerves were on fire with adrenaline, begging her to do to something, to fight for survival in a surer way. Her ears were clogged with ringing, she was now unable to hear anything but that, driving her near insanity. Desperately, her mindset seemingly became that of a small child's, as she began to cling onto the samurai's armor, her body thrumming with fear. She closed her eyes as she braced for the impact.

She didn't hear or see it when the last bomb, which had been placed closest to their area, went off. No, but she_ felt _it. It was hot, burning even, as she felt aching _agony_ fill her very being. The force of it pushed against her body, against both of them, knocking them both to the forest… floor? Wait, it didn't feel right. She could no longer feel any pain, heck, she couldn't even feel her body anymore.

_Is this death?_ It was entirely too scary to comprehend with her erratic mind. It was unpleasant, feeling _nothing_ in places where there _should have _been _something_. She couldn't _move_. It was alarming. It didn't_ feel _as if she were being restrained. There was nothing to restrain. She, her body, was gone, her conscious in an empty void…

Or at least she had thought so.

That was before her _body_ began to revive itself. The first place for her to start feeling was in her toes and fingers. Oh _god_. It was _painful. Agonizing_. The process of gaining her senses was a_ feeling _that made her want to die, something she was so scared of from what seemed like moments ago. It was just so… so_ dreadful_. Her head, her mind, felt fuzzy as she blinked open her eyes. At first she saw nothing but blackness. Then her vision began to clear and she took in the sight of a bright sky with fluffy and ironically happy looking clouds. It was a beautiful view, a thing for her to be glad for. She was still unable to move.

She was _stuck_.

Hoping to speed up the process, she began to wiggle her fingers and toes, getting the feeling of pinpricks in return. She pressed on, recognizing the familiar feeling of a "dead-leg". It felt like hours had passed before her whole body was engulfed in the feeling of it. She took this as a good sign but it was still something that felt unbearable. She squirmed on the ground to "wake" herself up, groaning over the unpleasantness.

The view that had been so bright had pretty much faded into the dim light of evening by the time that she was finally feeling normal. She sat up, testing out her limbs. Nothing seemed to be broken, her clothes seemed free of tears and the like. Aside from an intense feeling of weakness, the girl was perfectly unharmed.

"Oh… oh my. I can't _believe_ it," she muttered, her voice coming out softer and throatier than usual.

"Can't believe _what_?" A powerfully angry voice demanded to know. The shinobi whipped around, alarmed, before she recalled in a flash how she had… she had linked the charm to protect him as well. _Oh my god, oh my god, ohmygod, ohmy_god_._ This was unreal. In all her wildest dreams, she had never expected it to work. Yet the proof was in front of her. They both were alive and breathing and the only possible way for that to be was her master's stupid charm.

"We're _alive_," the girl replied with as she felt a rush of pure_ joy_. She still had the chance to do the things she wanted to do. She was still able to repay her master for all he'd done for her. She was freakin' _alive_. Unable to contain herself, she laughed. The sound was boisterous and full as she forgot all about her problems and her inevitable battle with the samurai not a meter away from her.

"What did you _do_?" Masanori asked, interrupting her with an intense front.

Sighing, the girl lifted up the bloodstained charm, "My master gave this to me. It protected us." It was a simple explanation, and best to stick to it. She herself had no clue how it worked, never bothered with things of its kind. And before he could pester her more on the subject she brought up something that was newly dawning on her as she took in their surroundings, "Where are we?"

They were no longer in the same forest that they had been. The oak trees had been replaced with pine and the color of the leaves suggested that autumn was blossoming. The pathway that had been blocked with stone was now clear and passable. It was a completely different place. She could still hear the sounds of cicada's but the wind had been strengthened and the bugs were few in numbers.

She was confused, horribly so. How did she get here? Did the charm… take them someplace else? Another forest? How far away from the capital? How far away from a_ village_? From her _**home**_? Swallowing, she stood up and continued to survey the area. Any creeks? Water was a sure sign that others were close but to her immense disappointment, there was no trace of it. She would have to find something herself and hope that it led her in the right direction.

But first and foremost…

She swiveled around to look at Masanori, her hard sharp gaze on him, "I'm calling a truce. If you can't put your damn _honor_ away, right now, I'll have to have a debate whether to kill you right now, or leave you to fend for yourself in these stupid woods," she barked at him.

There was a long stretch of silence as he studied her before slowly nodding, "Truce... _for now._"

His words made the girl tense, her muscle tightening in anticipation of a fight even as they protested due to her exhaustion. She met his gaze and a moment of untamed hatred passed between them, before he sighed, settling back as he moved into the only relaxed position the samurai knew, sitting down on the soft grass and adjusting himself in the armor. The shinobi could only think of how hot that suit of armor must feel but she pushed the thoughts of pity aside and let her feelings of dislike fade away… for now.

Nonetheless, his actions allowed the girl to settle back, as she sat back down with an easy smile and said, "I knew you'd see it my way."

With all the movement of her face, it reminded her that she still had her mask on, the feeling slightly uncomfortable. So before she spoke to Masanori about her plan, she pulled away the cloth covering her mouth, pulling it down to be underneath her chin. _There, that's more comfortable_, "Okay, so here's the deal," the shinobi pointed to a clear pathway in the trees. It veered off from the wider path that most would take and it headed downhill, "We're going in that direction."

"Are you certain? It looks dangerous…"

"I _knew_ it!" the girl shouted in exasperation, "Samurai are hardly any good with forests…"

His eyes narrowed with pure hatred, "Says the boy who nearly got us _killed_."

Good point. The girl restrained herself from snapping back with a sarcastic reply, "Look, what I mean is that samurai are not the low level foot soldiers going to war. You should know better than any other that they guard the rich and thus hardly ever have to go into the wilderness without a clear path laid out. It was because of this that I knew how to find you today," she explained, the last part coming out without a thought.

"You're… right."

"I'm different from you. I've been raised to survive alone for _months_ in places such as this and I know my way around them, so will you shut up and follow me, Superstitious-kun?"

Masanori said nothing, giving a blank look before standing up and moving in the direction the girl had pointed at. It was a clear win that brought a smile to her lips as she hurried after him to take the lead, "We have to find water, so keep your eyes sharp. Also, considering the lack of supplies, it's best if we find it quickly."

The girl studied the sky, guessing that they had about three hours to find anything before the sun went down. They better freakin' make it. Because she was not going to deal with a cranky samurai when it was the time to be the utmost vigilant and patient. Nope, that had never been in her job description.

* * *

（▼へ▼メ）

* * *

They had been walking for nearly an hour, both of them silent and in their thoughts, when Masanori spotted it: a small stream that trailed off, as he followed it into a larger body of water, a pond, bringing the body of water to the shinobi' attention. The samurai wouldn't dare admit it but he felt slightly smug over his victory over the boy. Here the boy had been telling him that he was practically no good in the forest and yet he was the one who found what they'd been looking for. The shinobi didn't seem to have any thoughts on the matter and only nodded slightly in the direction of the samurai. Masanori decided he didn't like this. At all.

He knew nothing about the shinobi, nothing about how they'd gotten to wherever they had gotten to, and nothing about that charm. The samurai really wanted to ask about it, about what this all was. The samurai was no stranger to things that were unnatural but still, he had never heard of anything like what had just happened to them. Appearing in a strange place because of a charm? It was nonsense but it was the only thing he had as an explanation. He also got the sense that the shinobi didn't know much about it himself. Nevertheless, the samurai settled his anxiousness with the thought that he would get the charm.

"So what do we do now?" Masanori asked once they'd come to a stop at the edge of the pond. The boy attempted to cover a startled yelp with a slight cough as he stuffed the charm into his weapon pouch hurriedly. Masanori narrowed his eyes but for the most part, didn't react. The boy cleared his throat.

"I've been thinking on this… and I want you to stay here while I look for others."

"No."

"Masa-chan…" he complained with a whiny tone. The samurai's brow lifted at how feminine it made the shinobi sound. How childish, "I just don't want t-"

"We may have come to a truce but I'm not so dim-witted as to trust you with coming back with help," Masanori interrupted briskly. He had had enough of this stupidity. He was half surprised with himself for not killing the shinobi first chance he got but then again, he was under a truce and Masanori wasn't one to break his word.

The boy sighed, cursing under his breath before mumbling out, "Fine, but just don't trip and fall down some stupid hole. I won't fish you out," the shinobi then gave him a weary look and then promptly strode away. The actions were not needed nor necessary but instead of acting out like he wanted to, he remained quiet. The boy ignored his silence and walked around the pond, hurrying up a small slope, "We'll head this way, it feels as if the wind is pushing in this direction so we'll fight it and that should bring us to a clearing or if we're lucky, a house."

"Should? Lucky? You're not making trusting you any easier."

The shinobi ignored Masanori as the boy surveyed the area they walked through. Masanori did the same, observing everything around him, he had always been rather watchful. It was weird, though, the forest didn't look so healthy, as if it had endured heavy duress. The leaves on the trees were discolored, edges frayed. There also seemed to be the scent of something that stirred up memories of training with explosives… soot? He wasn't sure. As they walked on he saw that the ground was mere packed in dirt, the grasses torn up by something. What he considered even stranger was the markings over specific mounds of dirt… With an eerie shudder, he realized that these were grave markings, a sight that he been met with on multiple occasions. They were somewhat fresh looking, as if they had been just placed weeks ago and of course, this was never a good sign.

He knew for a fact that whatever had happened here, wasn't something he wanted to walk in on and just as he was about to attempt to pull the boy back to head in another direction, the shinobi whispered to him, "We should head back… maybe find a place to sleep, w-."

Masanori would have been surprised over what happened, if the shinobi hadn't already demonstrated how stupid they already were. The boy had somehow slipped on something and in his attempt to keep upright, he had latched onto Masanori, taking him along and the two were sent tumbling down into a small cliff. God, this kid was an idiot. Masanori, for the most part, was protected due to his armor but the boy was another story, taking a nasty beating. Out of pity, the samurai ended up enfolding the small shinobi into his armored arms halfway down into the sloping cliff, and when they finally landed roughly in some prickly bushes, the two were stunned.

The samurai was the first to come to his senses, taking this time to take the weapon pouch of the dazed boy - surprised at how easy it was - before pushing him off and moving to assess their surroundings. What he saw from within the thick shrubbery they'd landed in, terrified him - a feeling the honorable samurai would never admit to feeling. These... these_ things_, fought each other, seemingly at random. In his gaze, though they appeared to wear the faces of men, they were monsters. They would use odd things to fight with, not the normal kind of weapons, such as swords - though those were being used to - and lances. No, they used their _bodies_, in a deadly calculated dance with chilling grace and speed his eyes almost couldn't keep up with. What's more, even the very elements themselves seemed to participate in the battle. The wind rushed so quickly in the air, even slicing men in half yet those bodies merely vanished in a puff of smoke, transforming into logs or other objects. If that weren't alarming enough, bodies of rock had been raised from the ground and sent sailing, the larger pieces crushing other men. It was truly horrifying, Masanori even thought he could see bugs being used to cover a man's mouth, suffocating him and crawling inside the body. And, strangely, there were marks on the ground around the battle field, similar to the ones he'd noticed on the boy's charm - archaic symbols he got the inherent feeling that if he crossed them… something very awful would happen.

All of this, in a clearing, and what was surprising was how few men were there. He counted about 30, yet they caused damage to the terrain enough to make it look as if a devastating earthquake shad taken place. But no, it was... humans - no, no,_ not _humans, these beings were bakemono, Kaiju...they were anything_ but _human. Yet, he couldn't see clearly if any of them had the telltale signs of the monsters he had grown up hearing about. Appearance-wise, they looked as human as any he'd seen before. Foreign, but human.

"Oh my god," the boy to his left hissed, shocking him out of his thoughts, "they are_ shinobi_."

Masanori had no idea how he had gotten that idea, but as he paid special attention to them, he saw that this could be true, despite their resemblance to that of foreigners - several with ridiculously bright red hair, some with blue eyes similar to his own strange color, and others with even more bizarre appearances. The observations sent his mind reeling. How were these beasts, these _shinobi_, doing this? Were_ all _shinobi able to do this? He slid a weary gaze in the direction of the boy next to him but then shook his head at the absurdity of it all. If this were true, everything he had grown up knowing and learning would have all been for nothing. He was in a dream. That's right-or perhaps he was dead? He died and his soul was in unrest. These assumptions were at least more realistic than this being reality. Yet, this dream held a vivid feel to it all that told him for sure that this, that _everything _happening… was very real.

Masanori wasted no time, seeing that staying there gaping at the mindless violence before them was not going to get him anywhere but the afterlife, he began to creep away as silently as possible, being sure to keep out of sight of the monsters, sticking to the shrubbery. The danger that he was in, visibly skyrocketed, when the boy's voice called out, "Masanori, where are you _going_?" He hissed out a breath of trepidation. You'd think that no one would be able to hear the question over all the chaos going on, but as his gaze flicked to the battle field anxiously, he saw there was one that _did_. His eyes were sharp on the two intruders. A flash of confusion flashed across the redheaded man's face, his bright blue eyes watchful as he began to make quick advances toward them, leaving the others to the vicious, inhuman battle.

"Heh, sorry to intrude! We, uh-we were just leaving!" Masanori heard the panicked boy say as he moved to stand right next to the lone samurai.

"Who are you? With the Ichizou clan?" The man asked then, his eyes studying them.

"Hah?"

"No."

"What is your business here? This is a battle-zone, we've warned the villagers, and you are dressed for battle, explain yourselves."

"We don't really know... how to." Damn, this kid was stupid and so was this other shinobi. It would be up to him to get them out of this mess.

"We are not from around here, we come from somewhere distant. If you would, please tell u-"

"That man is a samurai!" a voice called distantly, from across the clearing. Apparently this new man actually knew how to observe whereas the other man lacked in that skill. It seemed, the Ichizou's - assuming from what Masanori knew - had lost against the clan with all the red haired shinobi and now they were just picking off the remaining ones. This intimidated the samurai but it wasn't something he showed, in fact, his face was cool as stone as the men, finished with murdering the more persistent Ichizou, turned to face him.

"What is someone of your ilk doing here!? What business does a Lord's dogs have with shinobi!?" The man asked, his gaze turning ferocious.

"We're lost…" the dumbfounded samurai tried to say as the man's gaze focus switched to the boy beside him.

"I-I'm not samurai!" The boy said, panicking, waving his hands differently before him in a placating manner, "Shinobi, I'm a shinobi!"

"Then... why 'we'? A samurai and a shinobi together?" The man's face was guarded and suspicious, demanding, "Who do you work for?" He directed the next question at the boy, "What clan are you from?"

"No, there are, uh… special circumstances!" The boy tried smiling, and motioned towards Masanori comically, "We're not really _friends_!"

Oh no. Oh no, this was not going to happen, this... this _kid_ was not going to leave him to die alone. It was the boy's fault in the first place, after all, he should die along with him, "What are you saying? Has everything we've been through all been for nothing?" Masanori asked, staring at the boy incredulously.

The shinobi blanched before shaking his head, "Don't be ridiculous! We only just met today!"

"But it feels much longer..."

"How about we just kill them both?" a voice called out, "This is getting us nowhere, we need to check up on the oth-."

"Ryouma! Be quiet. If you want to help so much, why don't you go send word to my brother that we're finished here? Explain the situation, precisely," He called back to the loud mouthed man.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," the voice distantly muttered. Masanori would have looked up to see who had wanted their death, had it not been for him being distracted by the intense glare from the man in front of him.

"This is the last time I will ask, and not once more…" The man warned, and the surety in his voice nearly sent a tremor down his spine, "Who do you work for?"

* * *

**A/N:** This was intended to be longer but I decided to slow it down on the first chapter.

Anyway, this was a group effort between me and ninjagirl2211. The story idea is mine but she's helped me a lot in improving my writing and we've planned out the plot of the story, so I thought it was only right that this story is considered "co-written".

Please review, follow and favorite. It's very much appreciated and _needed_ in the writing process as it provides motivation and ideas.


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